Bear Mountain

places where you won't be able to wipe the wag off your dog's tail - Salisbury CT

The Park

Through much of the 19th century reference books stated confidently that no part of Connecticut was higher than 1,000 feet. No one living in the remote Litchfield Hills probably paid what was printed in books much mind but Robbins Battell of the prominent musical family of Norfolk wanted to set the record straight. He identified Bear Mountain as the highest point in the state, negotiated a long-term lease on the property and had it surveyed to make it official. But having set out in his quest for accuracy, Battell actually muddied the waters more. Long after the expert flutist, state senator and philanthropist died in 1894 modern surveying techniques identified the side of Mount Frissell, four miles away, as the highest point in Connecticut. Bear Mountain, however, is the state’s highest summit.

The Walks

Every Nutmeg state dog should get a chance to stand on the state’s highest summit. The most popular route is via the blue blazed Undermountain Trail to the Appalachian Trail, tagging the peak in just under three miles. Bear Mountain is an honest mountain - there is scarcely a downhill step on the ascent to the top - no depressing drops into saddles and ravines that set tails to drooping when you know you should be headed up. You are gaining over 1,500 feet in elevation on this canine hike but the serious panting does not begin until the final half-mile. Across Bear Mountain you’ll find view-blocking stretches of blueberry and huckleberry struggling with pitch pines and oaks in the stingy mountaintop soils. The views come soon enough, first to the west, then to the south and finally in all directions. You can continue across the summit and return on the 2.1-mile Paradise Lane Trail that crosses upland forests with small ups and downs. The drop down the north slope is steep, quick and rocky and will challenge the most cautious of dogs so take your time here. The full loop with a backtrack on the Undermountain Trail will cover about 6.6 miles.

Where The Paw Meets The Earth: After studying the map on the information board, the blazes will be sufficient to get you to the top and back.

Workout For Your Dog - Absolutely.

Swimming - Seasonal streams and a vernal pond are the best you can hope for.

Restrictions On Dogs - Dogs are welcome on these mountain trails.

Something Extra

Robbins Battell hired local mason Owen Travis to erect a tower on the roof of Connecticut in 1885. Without the aid of any roads, Travis spent the next three years hauling 350 tons of stone to the summit. He built a pyramid 20 feet square and 22.5 feet high in the rural tradition of New England stone fences with no mortar. A lightning rod extended another 17 feet above the surrounding countryside. Over the years the tower has crumbled but you and your dog can still scramble up ten feet of stabilized rubble and think about what it took to bring all these stones to the top of the state.

Phone Number - None

Website - None

Admission Fee - None

Directions - Salisbury; head north on Route 41 from the intersection with Route 44 in town. Go 3.5 miles to a large parking lot on the left for the Undermountain Trail (it is signed).

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Mount Pisgah

places where you won't be able to wipe the wag off your dog's tail - Blue Ridge Parkway, NC

The Park

The Cherokee Indians who lived here knew this mountain as Elseetoss and the ridge as Warwasseeta. There are conflicting stories of how the rounded summit became named for the biblical mount from which Moses first saw the “promised land” but by 1808 Mount Pisgah was appearing on North Carolina maps. Thomas Lanier Clingman, a U.S. Senator and Confederate General, owned 300 acres around the mountaintop for most of the 19th century until shortly before his death in 1897, when he sold this land to George W. Vanderbilt as part of the 125,000-acre Biltmore estate. Vanderbilt constructed a hunting lodge in Buck Springs Gap at the base of Mount Pisgah and carved a trail out from Biltmore for his guests. When Edith Vanderbilt sold 80,000 acres, including Mount Pisgah, to the United States Forest Service in 1914 the family retained 471 acres around the lodge. In 1918 the public began arriving at Mount Pisgah when the batten-board Pisgah Inn opened. It was rebuilt in the 1960s, about the same time the Blue Ridge Parkway was opened for travel here.

The Walks

The narrow footpath to the summit of Mount Pisgah that crosses the Parkway is a familiar trek for Asheville visitors, who can easily see the 5,721-foot peak from downtown. The first half of the 1.6-mile hike to tag the summit moves along agreeably, gaining only about 200 feet in elevation. After a couple of 90-degree right turns, however, the fangs come out with a more-or-less straight uphill 500-foot pull for the last half of this classic canine hike. This is a rock-infested trail with plenty of hops for your dog on both steps and small ledges. Northern red oaks have impeded your view most of the way but at the summit an observation deck serves up views of the Parkway, Cold Mountain to the west and the ever-popular look back at your car in the parking lot. You can also hike with your dog two miles to the next peak to the south, Frying Pan Mountain (or you can drive to the Forest Service Road 450 at Milepost 409.6) and just walk the final .7 of a mile up a gravelly dirt road to the 5,340-foot summit. Waiting for you at the top is the tallest lookout tower in Western North Carolina - a 70-foot high, five-flight steel structure. This is not a super dog-friendly tower with open steps and some rail-less stairs but even one flight will get you high enough for panoramic views. Back in the Mount Pisgah parking lot you can lead your dog south on a leg-stretcher to the foundations of the historic Vanderbilt hunting lodge that was razed in the 1960s. You can sit in the quiet clearing today and imagine what it was like to own everything you can see.

Where The Paw Meets The Earth: Rock steps and stony roads; no side trails to worry about.

Workout For Your Dog - Several hours of healthy climbing on tap.

Swimming - Not this trip.

Restrictions On Dogs - Dogs are allowed to summit Moutn Pisgah and Fryingpan Mountain

Something Extra

The views at Mount Pisgah don’t have to end when the sun goes down. It is estimated that the night sky in the United States is brightening by 5-10 percent every year. The eastern United States suffers from the worst light pollution on the planet and spots off the Blue Ridge Parkway offer a compromise between the best accessible darkness and being able to use telescopes that cannot easily be hauled to the backcountry. The Asheville Astronomy Club, for instance, uses Mount Pisgah as its main meeting spot.

Phone - (828) 298-0358

Website 

Admission Fee - None

Directions - Blue Ridge Parkway; Milepost 407.6.

hikewithyourdog.com

The Hiking With Dogs group on Facebook is the place to post photos and info on your favorite canine hikes. Also get questions answered and find advice from members: join now